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1. Field of the Invention
The invention is related to the provision of telecommunication services to the deaf and hearing impaired. More particularly, the invention is related to providing functionally equivalent services to the speech and hearing impaired. Still more particularly, this invention is related to providing a call center which allows the impaired to use sign language to speak to an interpreter that then translates the sign language to a voice call.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Title IV of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 requires the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to ensure that telecommunication services are provided to the hearing and speech impaired. Telecommunication Relay Services (TRS) are used to provide the functional equivalent of telecommunication services to the hearing and speech impaired. TRS have been available on a nationwide basis since 1983.
TRS operates in the following manner. A calling party for this system is a speech or hearing impaired person. The calling party has a TDD/TTY, which is a device for transmitting and receiving typed messages. The calling party places a call by dialing a local toll free number. The call is extended to a communication assistant. The call is a modem connection between the calling party and the communication assistant. The calling party then types a telephone number that the calling party wishes to call. A call is then placed by the communication assistant to the telephone number. When a call is established with a party at the desired telephone number, the calling assistant relays the call between the calling party and the called party. The calling party types in messages which are read by the calling assistant to the called party. The called party speaks to the calling assistant, who types in the called party""s message. This operation is performed in an opposite manner when a person is calling a hearing or speech impaired person.
It is a problem that type written messages are not the xe2x80x9cfunctional equivalentxe2x80x9d of telecommunications for hearing people. Most of the speech and hearing impaired use sign language to communicate and English is a second language to the speech and hearing impaired. Communication using typed out messages is difficult for the speech and hearing impaired. Therefore, a system is needed that allows the speech and hearing impaired to communicate via a telephone connection using sign language.
The above and other problems are solved and an advance in the art is made by a call center of this invention. A first advantage of the call center of this invention is that hearing and speech impaired subscribers are able to communicate via a telephone using sign language. This provides the hearing and speech impaired with an improved xe2x80x9cfunctionally equivalent_xe2x80x9d form of telephone communication. A second advantage of this invention is that remote interpreting of sign language can be performed.
A call center providing the above advantages is made of the following components. The call center has multiple terminals for handling calls connected to a switching system. Each of the terminals includes a computer system connected to the switching system and a telephone station connected to the switching system. The computer system is capable of handling video calls. The telephone station is a conventional voice telephone set. An operator that can interpret sign language operates the terminal.
The computer system at each terminal is connected to a call controller via a network. The call controller is also communicatively connected to the switching system. The call controller determines which terminal handles each incoming call. In order to determine which terminal handles each call, the call controller maintains a database of terminals.
The call center of this invention uses the following method to handle calls to provide sign language interpretation to the speech and hearing impaired. First, the switching system receives a call set-up message for an incoming telephone call. The switching system then determines whether the incoming call is for a video call from a speech or hearing impaired subscriber or a voice call from a calling party to a speech or hearing impaired subscriber. If the incoming call is a video call, the switching system transmits a request for the telephone line to the computer system in the terminal that will handle the call. If the incoming call is a voice call, the switching system transmits a request to the call controller for a telephone line connected to the telephone station of the terminal in the terminal that will handle the call.
The call controller receives the request. The next available terminal is selected by the call controller. The call controller then transmits the identity of the line of the proper video or voice line in the selected terminal. The switching system then extends the call to the computer system or telephone station in the terminal.
A communication assistant at the terminal answers the call at the terminal. If the call is a voice call, the communication assistant asks for the number to call to establish a video conference or connection with a hearing or speech impaired user. If the call is a video call, the video assistant asks for a voice number to call. When the second call is connected, the calling assistant then relays messages by interpreting sign language via video to the hearing or speech impaired user and talking to the second user.
In order to provide this sign language telephone relay service, a call controller of the call center is configured in the following manner. The call controller is a processing unit that has a memory. A terminal database is maintained in the memory by the call controller. The terminal database is used to maintain the current status of each terminal in the call center. The processing unit executes performs the following functions. First, the call controller receives a request from the switching system for an identity of one of said plurality of terminals to handle an incoming call. The call controller then determines which one of the terminals is available to handle the incoming call. The call controller transmits the identity of the selected terminal to the switching system.
In order to determine the identity transmitted back to the switching system the call controller may perform the following functions. First, the call controller determines whether the incoming call is a video call or a voice call. If the call is a video call, the call controller selects an identity of a computer system in a terminal. The identity of the telephone line connected to the selected computer system is then transmitted to the switching system.
In order to maintain a terminal database of the availability of terminals to handle calls the call controller executes the following process. When a terminal is available to handle a call, the call controller receives a terminal available message from one of the terminals. The call controller then updates the terminal database to indicate that the terminal is available to handle calls. When a terminal is not available to receive a call, the call controller receives a terminal unavailable message from the terminal and updates the terminal database to indicate that the terminal is unavailable to handle calls.
As stated above each terminal has a computer system and a telephone station. The computer system executes software that handles video calls. The computer system also performs the following functions in each terminal of a call center providing this invention. When a voice or a video incoming call is connected to the termninal, the computer system generates a call establish message. When the incoming call is terminated, the computer system generates a call terminated message. The call established message may include an indication as to whether the incoming call is a voice call or a video call. The call established message may also indicate the, hearing and speech impaired user being serviced during the call.
The call center of this invention must also have a method of tracking all the calls handled for billing purposes. Therefore, the call center may include a call detail record server that maintains records of calls connected to each of the terminals. The call detail record server may be a separate processing unit connected to the network in the call center or may be software executed by the computer system in each terminal of the call center.
The call center may perform the following functions. The call detail record server receives a call established message from a terminal indicating that an incoming call is connected to the terminal. In response to receiving the call established message, the call detail record server generates a call detail record for the incoming call. When the incoming call is disconnected, the call detail server receives a call terminated message from the terminal and updates the call detail record to indicate the length of time for the incoming call. The call detail record may also indicate the hearing and speech impaired user receiving service for the incoming call, a calling party for the incoming call, and a called party for the incoming call.
The call center of this invention may include a switching system connected to each of the terminals, the call controller, and the public telephone network switching system network. The switching system performs the following functions to process an incoming call. The switching system receives a call set-up message for the incoming call. In response to receiving the call set-up message, the switching system transmits a request for an identity of a terminal that is to handle the incoming call to the call controller. The switching system receives an identity of the terminal to handle the incoming call from the call controller and extends the incoming call to the identified terminal.
When an incoming call is received, the switching system may determine whether the incoming call is a video call and transmits a request for a computer station in one of the terminals. In response to the request, the switching system may receive an identity of an available terminal including the identity of the computer system. The switching system then extends the incoming call to the computer system. When an incoming call is a voice call, the switching system receives an identity of the telephone station in the available terminal and extends the incoming call to the telephone station.
In order to provide, sign language relay service to hearing impaired user, the hearing impaired user must have a video terminal. A video terminal is a camera, and a computer system that executes software which allows video received by the camera to be transmitted to via a telephone call. The video terminal is connected either directly or through the public switching system network to the switching system of this invention. Since the cost of video terminals may be prohibitive, video terminals could be set-up in public areas in order that all of the hearing and speech impaired have access to this telephone service.